Sue Schmid of the Community Foundation of St. Clair County accepts donations from a group of Port Huron Northern band students during the foundation's Give Where You Live event at the St. Clair County Community College greenway in 2014.(Photo: Times Herald)Buy Photo

Area nonprofits are teaming up with the Community Foundation of St. Clair County for a fundraising bonanza this spring.

"The Big Give" will run from midnight to midnight on June 12. The limited time frame and long run-up gives participating non-profits a chance to hype their causes and get people ready to donate.

The event skips years because the organizers believe it has a bigger impact that way.

"We don't want to have fundraising fatigue, so to speak," Jackie Hanton, vice president of the Community Foundation of St. Clair County, said. "We want it to be special."

The organizations will also split a bonus pool of more than $27,000. Each organization will receive a cut of the bonus pool based on its performance during the 24-hour fundraising period June 12.

St. Clair County Community Mental Health is participating this year for the first time. Over the next few months, it will be participating in a variety of activities alongside the other nonprofits to raise awareness leading up to the event.

"The funds we raise through this program will support the CMH Endowment Fund, which helps provide us with long-term financial sustainability," Karen Zultak, CMH spokeswoman, wrote in an email.

The last version of the fundraiser was in 2014 and went under the name "Give Where You Live." The 2014 event, combined with two previous events in 2009 and 2010, raised about $1.1 million for area nonprofits, according to the Community Foundation of St. Clair County website. Hanton said there's no specific fundraising goal; the foundation just wants the participating organizations to do well.

There are about 25 organizations that operate their endowments through the community foundation, said Hale Walker, Community Foundation of St. Clair County trustee. Half of the contributions received by these organizations will go to their endowment funds, helping them to have a stable financial future, he said.

"So many nonprofits are living hand to mouth and it's very hard to put money in their endowment funds," Walker said.

Walker said the event also gives smaller nonprofits the opportunity for much needed exposure. This year, donors will receive an email confirmation of their contribution that can be used to get special offers from participating local businesses.